Understanding Barriers to the Early Diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment Due to Alzheimer's Disease from the Perspective of Physicians and Patients: Results from a Real-World Survey in Germany
Author(s)
Chloe Walker, MSc1, Elke Mathey, M.Comp.Sc.2, Christian Hartmann, Pharmacist (approbation)2, Claudia Villmer, MBA2, Niels J. Brogaard, MSc3, Riya Arora, MA4, Sarah Cotton, MA1;
1Adelphi Real World, Bollington, United Kingdom, 2Novo Nordisk Pharma GmbH, Mainz, Germany, 3Novo Nordisk A/S, Søborg, 2860, Denmark, 4Novo Nordisk Service Centre India Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, India
1Adelphi Real World, Bollington, United Kingdom, 2Novo Nordisk Pharma GmbH, Mainz, Germany, 3Novo Nordisk A/S, Søborg, 2860, Denmark, 4Novo Nordisk Service Centre India Pvt Ltd, Bangalore, India
Presentation Documents
OBJECTIVES: To understand the barriers to early diagnosis of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and AD.
METHODS: Data were drawn from the Adelphi Real World AD Disease Specific Programme™, a cross-sectional survey of physicians and patients with MCI due to AD/AD in Germany from February-May 2023. Physicians reported demographics and Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores for approximately nine consecutively consulting patients, plus one patient with biomarker-confirmed MCI due to AD. Specialists reported perceived barriers to the identification of MCI due to AD. Patients self-reported reasons for delaying first consulting and health-related quality of life via the EQ-5D-5L (German tariff). Patient-reported data were grouped by MMSE: MCI due to AD (26-29), mild (21-25) or moderate (11-20) AD dementia. Analyses were descriptive.
RESULTS: Overall, 90 physicians reported data for 627 consecutively consulting patients. In total, 254 patients, including those with a biomarker-confirmed diagnosis of MCI due to AD, self-reported data. Mean (standard deviation) patient age was 73.4 (7.4) years and 49.9% were female. Mean MMSE score at diagnosis was 21.2 (3.9). Neurologist-reported barriers to early identification of MCI due to AD included delayed patient presentation due to lack of awareness/stigma (48.6%), and delayed referral to neurologists (45.7%). Overall, 92.5% of patients reported delaying visiting a physician; 66.3% as they thought their symptoms were part of normal ageing (62.5% MCI due to AD; 70.0% mild AD dementia at time of diagnosis) and 37.0% due to fear of what they may be told (56.2%; 35.0%). At data collection, mean EQ-5D-5L scores were 0.82 (0.19) for patients with MCI due to AD, 0.76 (0.20) for mild and 0.70 (0.19) for moderate AD dementia.
CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest increased public awareness and improved referral pathways are necessary to diagnose AD early, initiate treatment and improve patient outcomes.
METHODS: Data were drawn from the Adelphi Real World AD Disease Specific Programme™, a cross-sectional survey of physicians and patients with MCI due to AD/AD in Germany from February-May 2023. Physicians reported demographics and Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores for approximately nine consecutively consulting patients, plus one patient with biomarker-confirmed MCI due to AD. Specialists reported perceived barriers to the identification of MCI due to AD. Patients self-reported reasons for delaying first consulting and health-related quality of life via the EQ-5D-5L (German tariff). Patient-reported data were grouped by MMSE: MCI due to AD (26-29), mild (21-25) or moderate (11-20) AD dementia. Analyses were descriptive.
RESULTS: Overall, 90 physicians reported data for 627 consecutively consulting patients. In total, 254 patients, including those with a biomarker-confirmed diagnosis of MCI due to AD, self-reported data. Mean (standard deviation) patient age was 73.4 (7.4) years and 49.9% were female. Mean MMSE score at diagnosis was 21.2 (3.9). Neurologist-reported barriers to early identification of MCI due to AD included delayed patient presentation due to lack of awareness/stigma (48.6%), and delayed referral to neurologists (45.7%). Overall, 92.5% of patients reported delaying visiting a physician; 66.3% as they thought their symptoms were part of normal ageing (62.5% MCI due to AD; 70.0% mild AD dementia at time of diagnosis) and 37.0% due to fear of what they may be told (56.2%; 35.0%). At data collection, mean EQ-5D-5L scores were 0.82 (0.19) for patients with MCI due to AD, 0.76 (0.20) for mild and 0.70 (0.19) for moderate AD dementia.
CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest increased public awareness and improved referral pathways are necessary to diagnose AD early, initiate treatment and improve patient outcomes.
Conference/Value in Health Info
2025-05, ISPOR 2025, Montréal, Quebec, CA
Value in Health, Volume 28, Issue S1
Code
HSD52
Topic
Health Service Delivery & Process of Care
Disease
SDC: Neurological Disorders